Visit Widget Weekend

Downtown Arts District First Friday Art Walk

Friday, June 5, 5 - 8 p.m.
Multiple Galleries

Explore downtown Asheville’s creative side during this monthly art walk featuring galleries, studios, and cultural spaces throughout the Downtown Arts District. Meet artists, discover new exhibitions, enjoy special installations, and experience the vibrant arts scene at your own pace.

ABS Fest 2026

Saturday, June 6, 7:30 - 9:30 p.m.
The Orange Peel

Experience an unforgettable night of burlesque, live music, aerial arts, and jaw-dropping performances as acclaimed entertainers from across the country take the stage. Now in its 17th year, the Asheville Burlesque & Sideshow festival showcase delivers an evening of spectacle, creativity, and high-energy entertainment.

Related Events

• ABSFest Friday FanDom Nerdlesque at Grey Eagle, Fri. 8 - 10 p.m.
• ABSFest Brunch: Church of Decadence at Grey Eagle, Sun. 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.

Asheville Pickle Festival

Saturday, June 6, 12 - 9 p.m.
Tanger Outlets Asheville

Get your fill of all things pickle at this quirky festival packed with pickle-inspired food, drinks, live music, shopping, games, and offbeat fun. Sample creative pickle creations, browse local vendors, cheer on contests, and enjoy a day of wonderfully weird entertainment celebrating everyone’s favorite briny snack.

Twilight in the Treetops Summer Night Climbs

Saturday, June 6, 7:45 - 9:45 p.m.
Adventure Center of Asheville

See Asheville's Adventure Center in a whole new light during this after-dark climbing experience. Tackle illuminated aerial trails, soar through the trees on a sky kayak or hang glider, and navigate a canopy filled with thousands of twinkling lights and lasers for an unforgettable summer adventure.

Asheville Honey Fest 2026

Sunday, June 7, 12 - 6 p.m.
Highland Brewing Company

Celebrate all things honey at this sweet summertime festival featuring live music, food trucks, local vendors, and plenty of opportunities to sample and shop for honey from near and far. Learn about pollinators, cheer on the finals of the International Black Jar Honey Competition, and cast your vote for the People’s Choice Honey Award while enjoying a family-friendly day dedicated to the bees.

Asheville Veganfest

Sunday, June 7, 12 - 5 p.m.
Pack Square Park

Sample your way through some of the Southeast’s best plant-based food while enjoying live music, fitness classes, local vendors, and family-friendly activities in Pack Square. Whether you're vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian, or simply a food lover, this free festival offers plenty of opportunities to discover new flavors, support local businesses, and enjoy a fun day downtown.

Recurring Events

Luminere

Friday - Sunday, June 5-7, 4:30 p.m. - Nightfall
Biltmore

Experience Biltmore after dark as light, sound, and storytelling transform the estate into an immersive nighttime spectacle. Wander through illuminated gardens, glowing landscapes, and atmospheric installations that reveal a completely different side of America’s Largest Home.

Spring Into The Arb!

Friday - Sunday, June 5-7, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
North Carolina Arboretum

The final weekend of this spring time series will conclude with Bonsai in the Blue Ridge, a limited-time exhibition of more than fifty curated bonsai displays.

Live Music, Comedy, Dance and Theatre

Friday, June 5:

• Asheville Drum Circle at Pritchard Park, 6 p.m.
• Sit a Spell |Traditional Music Jam at Ginger's Revenge, 6 p.m.
• Esther Rose with Sam Gelband at AyurPrana Listening Room, 7 p.m.
• Off with your Radiohead (Radiohead tribute) at Eulogy, 7 p.m.
• Hot In Herre: 2000s Dance Party at Orange Peel, 7 p.m.
• New Quintet Show at Leveller Brewing, 7 p.m.
• The Psycodelics at Sierra Nevada Brewing, 7 p.m.
• Wood Fired Comedy at The Cultura Room, 7 p.m.
• Love and Other Vices at Wortham Center for the Performing Arts, 7:30 p.m.
• High Horse at White Horse Black Mountain, 7:30 p.m.
• Othello at Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre, 7:30 p.m.
• Live Music - No Man's Band at The Radical, 8 p.m.
• Pride Month Film Party: Fixin' to Stay at Day Trip, 8 p.m.
• YIKES! Dating Disaster Comedy with Sarah Love at VaVaVoom Boutique, 9 p.m.
• Thought Process w/ Maxfield & visuals by The Void at Third Room, 9 p.m.

Saturday, June 6:

• Free Show: Canon Tyler at Grey Eagle, 2 p.m.
• Beach Blanket B-I-N-G-O at White Horse Black Mountain, 2 p.m.
• Earl Scruggs Music Festival Battle of the Banjos at Sierra Nevada Brewing, 2 p.m.
• Flatland Cavalry at Asheville Yards, 6 p.m.
• The New Variants with Doss Church & the Unholy Noise at Sierra Nevada Brewing, 6:30 p.m.
• Joe's Cousin at Bear's Smokehouse BBQ, 7 p.m.
• Love and Other Vices at Wortham Center for the Performing Arts, 7:30 p.m.
• Othello at Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre, 7:30 p.m.
• Zelda Fitzgerald Tribute: "Save Me the Waltz" with Cafe String Quartet at Black Mountain Center for the Arts, 7:30 p.m.
• American Tune: Simon, Croce, & Taylor at White Horse Black Mountain, 7:30 p.m.
• Paul McDonald & The Mourning Doves w/ Blue Roses at Grey Eagle, 8 p.m.
• Undertow - a Tribute to Tool w/ Dobarae at Third Room, 8 p.m.
• Eyes Up Here Comedy: Pride Edition at Ginger's Revenge, 8 p.m.
• Witching Hour, Dark and Dirty Comedy at Eda Rhyne Distilling, 10 p.m.

Sunday, June 7: 

• The Persephone Project Novelette Launch Extravaganza at Story Parlor, 1 p.m.
• Suns of Stars at One World Brewing West, 2 p.m.
• Ryan Taylor Price at Sierra Nevada, 2 p.m.
• Jazz Jam Sundays at Ginger's Revenge, 2:30 p.m.
• Cowboy Judy at White Horse Black Mountain, 3 p.m.
• Reggae Sunday with Chalwa Roots at French Broad River Brewery, 3 p.m.
• Men in Harmony at St. Matthias' Episcopal Church, 4 p.m.
• Holland Negative & The Bog w/ Doug Mcelvy at Grey Eagle, 5:30 p.m.
• Shadow Play Party with Miranda Wildman at The Radical, 6 p.m.
• Duncan Trussell (Early Show) at Orange Peel, 6 p.m.
• Black Uhuru w/ Strong Fire at Third Room, 7 p.m.
• LaughsMaxxing Comedy Show at RAD Brewing, 7 p.m.
• Othello at Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre, 7:30 p.m.
• The Deslondes at Grey Eagle, 8 p.m.
• Duncan Trussell (Late Show) at Orange Peel, 9 p.m.

Tailgate & Specialty Pop-Up Markets

Shop local at the Asheville area's numerous farmers, tailgate, and craft markets. Here's a look at some of the places you can shop this weekend:

• Champagne + Shopping at Jeffrey Burroughs, Fri. 5 - 7 p.m.
• LoCol Market at The Local Collective, Sat. 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Ooh La La Curiosity Market at Pritchard Park, Sat. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• Pop-up Mini Craft Fair at Folk Art Center, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• Asheville City Market at 52 North Market St., Sat. 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
• Swannanoa Market at The Hub, Sat. 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
• Market on The Roof at The Roof, Sun. 3 - 5 p.m.
• WNC Farmers Market at 570 Brevard Road, open 7 days a week, year-round, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.    

Visit an art studio or art exhibition 

Asheville is home to hundreds of artists, galleries and studios making creative expression a way of life here in the mountains. Here is a look at some of the current art exhibitions in the city:

• Downtown Arts District First Friday Art Walk in Downtown Asheville, Fri. 5 - 8 p.m.
• Opening reception: Common Ground - New Paintings by Linda Gritta at Bender Gallery, Fri. 5 - 8 p.m.
• Opening reception: Paintings Showcasing Collaborations Between Artists and Poets at Asheville Gallery of Art, Fri. 5 - 8 p.m.
• Art by the Tracks Spring Show at Black Mountain Depot, Sat. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• New: Art in Bloom: The Regional Artists Gallery Exhibit at Black Mountain Center for the Arts, through Jun. 17
• Tamie Beldue: Light Shadows at blue spiral 1, through Jun. 24
• Christine Kosiba and Peggy Root: Into the Wild at blue spiral 1, through Jun. 24
• Off Script at Blue Spiral 1, through Jun. 24
• In A New Light: American Impressionism 1870–1940 at Asheville Art Museum, through Jun. 28
• Art in Bloom at Black Mountain Center for the Arts, through Jul. 24
• Black Mountain COLL(A)GE at Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center, through Sep. 5
• Electric Garden: An All-Ages Interactive Art Installation at Third Room, through Sept. 20
• Luminere at Biltmore, through Oct. 18
• Artist Open Studio at Artbeat Gallery & Lounge, through Dec. 31

Packages and Deals

Save some money this weekend with these special offers from area attractions and accommodations.

• Limited Time Offer, 45% off private open-air saltwater hot tubs at Shoji Spa
• Amazing Last Minute Deals on WNC Vacation Homes at Carolina Mornings Luxury Vacation Rentals
• 20% Off 80 Lex - Downtown Rental at POP Rentals